With Sarah having defeated her heart demon, I was left alone with my own, causing me to sigh in relief since now I could finally rid myself of this foolish and ugly imitation that had been staining my eyes since their existence.
"You look rather worried; I didn't realize a heart demon could feel fear. That is quite amusing." Said Elif with a faint smirk of amusement as he glanced at (HD)Elif while flicking his hair behind his ears, causing him to gnash his teeth angrily.
"Fear!? Why would I ever feel fear when facing the person who created me!? I'm the demon within your heart! I don't feel fear; I create fear! I am fear!" Stated (HD)Elif solemnly as he waved his hands, manifesting two massive purple palms in the air while pointing his fingers at Elif, shooting spinning purple beams at him.
"Hmm, sure, whatever you say. Anyway, let us end this little farce; it feels as if weeks have passed, and I'm beginning to miss my dearest sister." Remarked Elif calmly as he squinted, causing the void of cascading purple Qi to suddenly tremble while the attacks of (HD)Elif began to deform.
"What!? W-What's happening!?" Exclaimed (HD)Elif in slight fear, watching as his attacks were forcefully dispersed from the sudden trembling, which only grew in intensity.
Sensing my Immortal Will's ever-powerful and incredibly pure intent, I glanced at my heart demon, who was frightened but had yet to realize what was happening.
"Now then… Kneel before me." Declared Elif pridefully with an aura of superiority as he pointed at (HD)Elif, eyeing him with a look of obvious disdain and indifference, angering him.
"D-Did you think your Immortal Will would work on me!? I-I'm you!" Stated (HD)Elif with a ferocious smile as he proudly raised his head while seemingly effortlessly resisting the might of the Immortal Wil, causing Elif to raise an eyebrow.
"If so, why is a mongrel such as yourself sweating? There is no point in lying; you may be highly resistant to my Immortal Will since you're my heart demon, but you're not immune to it." Remarked Elif calmly as he waved his hand, manifesting a purple palm in the sky while staring at (HD)Elif, who gritted his teeth in fury before aggressively waving his hands, manifesting two purple palms and launching them.
"Tch, s-shut it! I'll kill you, then take over your body!" Said (HD)Elif viciously as he glared at Elif with slight signs of madness swirling about within his eyes.
Seeing the incoming palms, I pushed my own forward, causing it to streak through the sky as it collided with the two, creating a large explosion of Qi that faintly shook the void, followed by me raising my finger, launching several spinning beams of condensed purple Qi, forcing him onto the defensive as he either blocked my attack with his palms or simply evaded it, though the second option was significantly harder.
With my Immortal Will affecting him, it was now a matter of time, waiting until he slipped up so I could deliver, hopefully, a mortal injury, but I had to give him some degree of props; he was managing to last for a good while without messing up.
'Hmm, well, it's only expected; he is an imitation of me. If he weren't at least this good, I'd be both offended and disappointed.' Thought Elif lightly as he repeatedly shot Gyakusatsu's at (HD)Elif while using his other hand to occasionally launch a purple palm his way.
"F-Fucker! C-Come down here and fight me like a man!" Yelled (HD)Elif furiously as he glared at Elif while struggling to withstand the constant onslaught of attacks.
"That is not even how I speak. I could probably count on my hands how many times I've uttered a profanity; such words are rather unbecoming for someone such as I, so I tend to steer clear of them. Though sometimes, very rarely, I will let one slip through when highly frustrated or angry." Remarked Elif casually as he shook his head while gazing at (HD)Elif, who was gnashing his teeth before quickly manifesting a purple palm before him, blocking a purple beam from penetrating him.
It was rather obvious to me that my heart demon was reaching his limit, and it was only a matter of time until he slipped up and made a mistake, which I wouldn't hesitate to capitalize on. As a couple more moments passed by, I suddenly smirked before shifting my finger slightly to the left and launching a purple beam, causing it to speedily pierce through the sky as it narrowly flew right through the gaps of the fingers on the purple palm he manifested.
He was already preparing for the next attack, so by the time he had noticed, it was far too late to do anything.
"GAHHH!" Yelled (HD)Elif in agony as he clutched his chest while stumbling backward, attempting to swiftly manifest another palm, but another beam pierced his heart.
Swiftly approaching my heart demon, I launched several Gyakusatsu's into him, creating multiple holes throughout his body while slamming my hand downwards, manifesting a purple palm above him as it violently slammed into his body. However, since there was no ground, I was forced to create another, though this time, it was moving upwards from underneath him; when the two palms collided, a massive and violent explosion erupted throughout the void that faintly shook in response.
Once the smoke cleared, I saw my heart demon, surprisingly still alive, though that was merely a testament to how powerful my physique was; though, his life was hanging by a single string, which I decided to go ahead and cut.
"Bye. I hope to never see you again, though if I do, just know the outcome would be the exact same." Said Elif casually as he approached (HD)Elif, who slowly opened his eyes, only for a beam to pierce his head.
"E-Elaine…" Muttered (HD)Elif softly as his figure slowly dissipated into nothingness, causing Elif to furrow his brows before sighing and shaking his head.
Watching as the surrounding void of cascading purple lights began to crack, I sat cross-legged and began meditating.
___
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"Lynda, how is-" "What did I say about speaking, Illumia?" Asked Illumia and Lynda, respectively, as the latter rudely interrupted her with an unpleasant expression, causing the former to lower her head before glancing at Sarah.
"How is His Highness, Ms. Lynda?" Asked Sarah anxiously as she looked at Lynda, whose expression noticeably softened.
"He is doing fine; from the lack of painful expressions, I could only assume he has the upper hand against his heart demon. However, I have no way of knowing how much longer he will take." Replied Lynda softly as she glanced at Sarah, who nodded before glancing at Elif, only to stand up and bow.
"I-I'm sorry, Ms. Lynda." Stated Sarah apologetically as she deeply bowed to Lynda, who raised an eyebrow before shaking her head.
"There is no need for you to apologize, Sarah; you're not at fault." "B-But if it weren't for me, His Highness would've never done this." Remarked Lynda and Sarah, respectively, as the latter raised her head and glanced at Elif, causing the former to click her tongue.
"Maybe so, but if that's the case, then it is His Highness's fault. We can't exempt him from fault just because he is our Prince; besides, I will ensure he takes full blame for this whole ordeal… You as well, Illumia, don't think I have forgotten about you." Stated Lynda softly as she glanced at Sarah before glaring at Elif and Illumia, causing the latter to silently lower her head in shame.
I wanted to rebuke Ms. Lynda, but before I could, a faint burst of Qi erupted from His Highness, slightly pushing me back, though other than that, it was completely harmless; however, afterward, his body moved, and he sat into a cross-legged position, causing me to smile as I nearly shouted his name in joy, only for Illumia cover my mouth.
'Quiet, Sarah. Do not make any noise.' Said Illumia sternly via divine sense as she eyed Sarah before glancing at Elif, who, despite being significantly injured, looked far better than before.
Nodding in response to Illumia's words, she slowly freed my mouth, causing me to silently observe His Highness before glancing at her in confusion.
'W-What's wrong, Illumia?' Asked Sarah via divine sense, her words answered by Lynda, who gave Illumia a deep stare.
'There is nothing wrong with His Highness per-se; it's just, if you had shouted, you would've most likely awoken him from his epiphany.' Said Lynda via divine sense as she glanced at Elif before looking at Sarah, who widened her eyes in response.
'E-Eh!? A-Another epiphany!? H-His Highness really is something special.' Remarked Sarah via divine sense as she stared at Elif in shock and amazement, her words causing both Lynda and Illumia to nod, though the former was rather reluctant.
'Hmph, all it does is prolong his time until punishment.' Stated Lynda via divine sense with an annoyed expression as she glared at Elif, who was deeply meditating, rapidly improving his comprehension of his Immortal Will.
'So, um, will we just stay here, or can we leave?' Asked Sarah via divine sense as she glanced at Lynda, who inwardly sighed.
'It would be best if we don't move; just slight noise, vibration, and movement of Qi can awaken him.' Replied Lynda softly via divine sense as she glanced at Sarah, who nodded, prompting the two of them to silently stand while watching Elif.